Deliberate Living

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to confront only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.

Henry David Thoreau, Walden (1854)

NEVER STOP LAUGHING

Just before the funeral services, the undertaker came up to the very
elderly widow and asked, 'How old was your husband?' '98,' she
replied. 'Two years older than me' 'So you're 96,' the undertaker commented.
She responded, 'Hardly worth going home, is it?

*****

Reporters interviewing a 104-year-old woman: 'And what do you think is
the best thing about being 104?' the reporter asked. She simply
replied, 'No peer pressure.'

******

The nice thing about being senile is you can hide your own Easter eggs.

*****

I've sure gotten old! I've had two bypass surgeries, a hip
replacement, new knees, fought prostate cancer and diabetes. I'm half
blind, can't hear anything quieter than a jet engine, take 40
different medications that make me dizzy, winded, and subject to
blackouts. Have bouts with dementia. Have poor circulation; hardly
feel my hands and feet anymore. Can't remember if I'm 85 or 92. Have
lost all my friends. But, thank God, I still have my driver's license.

******

I feel like my body has gotten totally out of shape, so I got my
doctor's permission to join a fitness club and start exercising. I
decided to take an aerobics class for seniors. I bent, twisted,
gyrated, jumped up and down, and perspired for an hour. But, by the
time I got my leotards on, the class was over.

******

An elderly woman decided to prepare her will and told her preacher she
had two final requests. First, she wanted to be cremated, and second,
she wanted her ashes scattered over Wal-Mart. 'Wal-Mart?' the
preacher exclaimed. 'Why Wal-Mart?' 'Then I'll be sure my
daughters visit me twice a week'

******

My memory's not as sharp as it used to be. Also, my memory's not as
sharp as it used to be.

*****

THE SENILITY PRAYER : Grant me the senility to forget the people I
never liked anyway, the good fortune to run into the ones I do, and
the eyesight to tell the difference.

*****

Always Remember This: You don't stop laughing
because you grow old, You grow old because you stop laughing

CHANGE

Change has a considerable psychological impact on the human mind. To the fearful, it is threatening because it means that things may get worse. To the hopeful, it is encouraging because things may get better. To the confident, it is inspiring because the challenge exists to make things better.

King Whitney Jr.

TOP TEN WORDS WOMEN USE

(1) "Fine": This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

(2) "Five Minutes": If she is getting dressed, this means half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

(3) "Nothing": This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in "fine."

(4) "Go Ahead": This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!

(5) "Loud Sigh": Actually this is not a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)

(6) "That's Okay": This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

( 7) "Thanks": Reply "You're welcome." (However, a word of caution-- this is true, unless she says 'Thanks a lot' which means she is not thanking you at all. DO NOT say 'you're welcome'-- that will bring on a 'whatever').

(8) "Whatever": Is a woman's way of saying "*$^@-- YOU!"

(9) "Don't worry about it, I got it.": Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to # 3.

(10) "Do you think I'm your mother?!" Do not reply to this one at all. Pretend to be having a heart attack and whisper "Call 9-1-1."

THE PROGRESSION OF A GRIEF OBSERVED

My special friend, Dr. Kevin Merigian, lost his dear wife in June, 2009. At 49 years, she lived a full life in a very short time. The following poem is a classic example of the process of loss by someone who has looked grief square in the eye and won the battle. God bless him!

SOMEHOW I MAKE IT THROUGH

There are those painful days.
Sun rises in the morning.
I experience the agony of breathing.
I know that you're not here beside me.
I know that you can't return.
I know that you can't touch me again.
I know that I can't hold you close.

Somehow I make it through those painful days.

There are those not-so-painful days.
Sun rises in the morning.
I experience the work of breathing.
I know that you're not here beside me.
I know that you can't return.
I know that you can't touch me again.
I know that I can't hold you close.

Somehow I make it through those not-so-painful days.

The painless days are ahead.
The sun will rise in the morning.
I will experience unconscious breathing again.
I know that you will not be here beside me.
I know that you will not return.
I know that you will not touch me again.
I know that I will not hold you close again.

Somehow I will make it through those painless days.

Some days the tears seem almost artificial.
The crying is always real.

I miss you.

Kevin S “Kiki” Merigian © October 20, 2009

From Barry Goldwater of Arizona

Politics [is] the art of achieving the maximum amount of freedom for individuals that is consistent with the maintenance of social order.

I'm not sure I've even got the brains to be President.

BEWARE OF THE CRITICAL MOMENTS THAT SHAPE US...

In puzzlement Truman Capote was trying to understand how he (who was a world renowned author) and Perry Smith (who was a cold bloodied murderer) could have turned out so differently. Both of them had alcoholic parents who basically abandoned both. Each of them grew up in foster homes or with extended family members, yet they turned out so radically different.

Said Capote, puzzled: We grew up in the same household, but I went out the front door, and he went out the back.